Surgical stapling devices are employed by surgeons to sequentially or simultaneously apply one or more rows of surgical fasteners such as staples or two-part fasteners to body tissue for the purpose of joining segments of body tissue together. Such stapling devices generally consist of a pair of jaws (one being the cartridge side and one being the anvil side) or arm-like structures between which body tissue to be joined is placed. When the instrument is actuated, or “fired,” longitudinally moving firing bars contact staple drive members in one of the jaws, thereby pushing surgical staples through body tissue and into an anvil in the opposite jaw which crimps the staples closed. If tissue is to be removed, a knife blade can be provided to cut between lines of staples. Examples of such instruments are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,354,628, 5,014,899 and 5,040,715, teachings of each of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Surgical stapling devices have found widespread application in surgical operations where body tissue must be joined or removed, such as, bariatric, colorectal, and thoracic procedures. When operating on thin tissue, such as thin emphysematous lung tissue, it is important to effectively seal the tissue which can be particularly prone to air leakage. Preventing or reducing air leakage can significantly decrease post operative recovery time. Inhibiting or preventing tearing at the stapled incision site in musculoaponeurotic areas also significantly decreases recovery time.
Thus, structures for use with surgical stapling devices which enhance sealing at the surgical site and/or reduce tissue tearing are desired.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,503,638, 5,575,803, 5,549,628, 5,702,409, 5,810,855 and 5,908,427 describe surgical staple line reinforcement devices and surgical stapling apparatus with tissue bolstering materials.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,752,965 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,939,358 describe apparatus for applying surgical reinforcement material onto the working surface of a surgical stapler without requiring removal of excess material.
The present invention provides a long felt need for an apparatus that quickly and easily applies a thin and flexible surgical reinforcement material to a stapler.